Transactions with imaging analysis

ABSTRACT

A money transfer system with imaging. The system includes a first money transfer terminal and an imaging device. The imaging device is configured to acquire a first set of imaging information of a user. The system also includes a host computer system, configured to receive at least a portion of the first set of financial transaction information and at least a portion of the first set of imaging information. The system also includes a previous transaction database, an external database, and a decision maker terminal. The system also includes a second money transfer terminal and a second imaging device. The second imaging device is configured to acquire a second set of imaging information of the second user.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This Application is a non-provisional application. It is related to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/409,937, filed on Mar. 24, 2009, entitled“Consumer Due Diligence For Money Transfer Systems And Methods.” ThisApplication hereby incorporates by reference the content of theaforementioned application in its entirety and for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to imaging, and,in particular, to the analysis of imaging information associated with amoney transfer client.

Money transfers present a convenient way to quickly transfer monetaryfunds over great distances. These transfers allow, for example, a senderto pay cash to an agent of a money transfer business and specify to whomthe money will be transferred. The recipient may take distribution ofthe money, that may occur almost instantaneously, at the same or adifferent agent location. The agent location where the recipient takesdistribution of the money may be in a different city, state, or countrythan the location from which the sender transmitted the funds. Theability to send large and small amounts of money, including cash,quickly over great distances naturally results in a small percentage ofusers attempting to exploit such a system for illicit purposes. Further,it may be possible that while the sender realizes the money will be usedfor illicit purposes, the initial recipient may be unaware the money isintended for such purposes. The reverse situation also may be true: thesender believing she is participating in a legitimate transaction,unaware of the unlawful intentions of the recipient. Of course, in someinstances, both parties may be aware of the illegal nature of theirtransaction.

This minority of users may attempt to use the system to transfer drugmoney, money for terrorist activities, money to fund gang wars, orcountless other illegal or immoral purposes. Further, these users mayattempt to conceal the fact that they are using the money transfersystem for illicit purposes, making it harder to detect and prevent thetransaction. Currently, information that may be collected during a moneytransfer may be information necessary to identify the recipient andinformation required by law. Gathering more information on the senderand/or on the recipient, such as their facial expressions, state of mindor current mood, may allow for a more accurate determination of whetherthe sender, recipient, or both are attempting to use the money transfersystem for illicit purposes. This invention serves to remedy these andother problems.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Devices, systems, and methods are described for a novel money transferarchitecture. In some embodiments, a money transfer system is described.The money transfer system includes a first money transfer terminal. Thefirst money transfer terminal may be configured to receive financialtransaction information from a user and to receive imaging informationfrom a first imaging device. The financial transaction information mayinclude an amount of funds, an intended recipient of the funds, and alocation for pick-up of the funds. Financial transaction information mayinclude a control number, such as a transaction identifier, personalinformation of the sender and/or recipient (e.g. name, address,telephone number, and social security number), loyalty information,and/or payment or payout information such as the account number, routingnumber, Personal Identification Number (“PIN”), Card Verification Value(“CVV”), etc. At least a portion of the financial information and theimaging information may be transferred to a host computer system. Theimaging device may be configured to acquire imaging information of theuser and communicates with the first money transfer terminal. The hostcomputer system may be communicatively coupled with a previoustransaction database and an external database. The previous transactiondatabase includes financial information and imaging information for aplurality of users, user types, or both. The external database includesimaging information for a plurality of persons, person types, or both.The decision-maker terminal communicates with the host system, displaysat least a portion of the financial transaction information and imaginginformation. The decision maker terminal may receive a decision from adecision maker. The system may further include a second money transferterminal and a second imaging device. The second money transfer terminalmay be configured to disburse at least a portion of the amount of funds,and transmit at least a portion of imaging information on the recipientto the host system. Such an embodiment allows the user sending funds,and the recipient of the funds to be evaluated prior to funds beingreleased.

In some embodiments, the money transfer system includes a money transferterminal, a user imaging device, and a host computer system. The moneytransfer terminal may be configured to receive financial transactioninformation from a user and interface with the host computer system. Theuser imaging device may be configured to acquire an image of the user.The host computer system may be configured to receive financialtransaction information transmitted from the money transfer terminal. Insome embodiments, at least a portion of the user information collectedby the user imaging device may be transmitted to the host computersystem. In some embodiments the imaging device may be a magnetic imagingmachine.

In some embodiments of the invention, a method of processing a moneytransfer may be present. The method provides a money transfer systemthat includes a money transfer terminal, an imaging device, and a hostcomputer system. The money transfer terminal may be configured toreceive financial information from a user. The imaging device may beconfigured to acquire imaging information of the user. The host computersystem may be communicatively coupled with the imaging device and themoney transfer terminal. The method also includes receiving financialtransaction information at a money transfer terminal from a user,transmitting financial transaction information from the money transferterminal to the host computer system. The method also includes receivingimaging information associated with the user from the imaging device atthe host computer system, and evaluating the imaging information and thefinancial transaction information.

In some embodiments of the invention, a user may be prompted for moreinformation based at least in part on the imaging information collectedfrom the user. In some embodiments of the invention, the imaging devicemay be a functional magnetic resonance imaging machine.

In some embodiments of the invention, a method of approving a moneytransfer initiated (e.g. send a money transfer or receive a moneytransfer) by a user may be present. The method includes providing amoney transfer system, the money transfer system includes a moneytransfer terminal, an imaging device, and a host computer system. Themoney transfer terminal may be configured to receive financialinformation from a user. The imaging device may be configured to acquireimaging information of the user. The host computer system may becommunicatively coupled with the imaging device and the money transferterminal. The method further includes receiving financial transactioninformation regarding the user at the host computer system from themoney transfer terminal, wherein the financial transaction informationincludes a recipient, alternatively referred to as a target party. Themethod also includes receiving imaging information regarding the user atthe host computer system from the imaging device; accessing a databasestored on a computer-readable medium at the host computer system,wherein the database includes imaging information associated with aplurality of persons; comparing the imaging information received fromthe imaging device to the imaging information stored in the database;and determining whether to approve the money transfer, wherein thedetermination may be based at least in part on the imaging informationreceived from the imaging device. This allows the imaging informationgathered from the user to be evaluated before approval of the moneytransfer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the presentinvention may be realized by reference to the following drawings. In theappended figures, similar components or features may have the samereference label. Further, various components of the same type may bedistinguished by following the reference label by a second label thatdistinguishes among the similar components. If only the first referencelabel is used in the specification, the description is applicable to anyone of the similar components having the same first reference labelirrespective of the second reference label.

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of an embodiment of a moneytransfer terminal.

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of an embodiment of a moneytransfer terminal with an imaging device.

FIG. 3 is a simplified block diagram of another embodiment of a moneytransfer terminal with an imaging device connected to a host system.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram of another embodiment of a moneytransfer terminal with an imaging device and a previous transactiondatabase.

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram of another embodiment of a moneytransfer terminal with an imaging device and additional databases and asecond money transfer terminal.

FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram of a method of conducting a moneytransfer with a sender.

FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of a method of conducting a moneytransfer with a recipient.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Devices, systems, and methods are described for the implementation of anovel architecture for determining whether a money transfer should beallowed, blocked, or further analyzed. Imaging information of a personsending funds via a money transfer system (a “sender”), gathered by animaging device, may be analyzed for certain traits, patterns, clues, orother evidence as to the mindset, intentions, or motives of the sender.This information may be used, at least in part, to determine whether toallow, block, or gather further information on the money transfer. Asimilar analysis may be conducted on the recipient of funds (a“recipient”), as to whether the transaction should be allowed, blocked,or further analyzed.

This description provides example embodiments only, and is not intendedto limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention.Rather, the ensuing description of the embodiments will provide thoseskilled in the art with an enabling description for implementingembodiments of the invention. Various changes may be made in thefunction and arrangement of elements without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention.

Thus, various embodiments may omit, substitute, or add, variousprocedures or components as appropriate. For instance, it should beappreciated that in alternative embodiments, the methods may beperformed in an order different from that described, and that varioussteps may be added, omitted, or combined. Also, features described withrespect to certain embodiments may be combined in various otherembodiments. Different aspects and elements of the embodiments may becombined in a similar manner.

It should also be appreciated that the following systems, methods, andsoftware may individually or collectively be components of a largersystem, wherein other procedures may take precedence over or otherwisemodify their application. Also, a number of steps may be requiredbefore, after, or concurrently with the following embodiments.

Further, the ensuing description details imaging devices, systems, andmethods applied to money transfers. This is meant for example purposesonly, and does not serve as a limitation on the applicability of theinvention. Those with skill in the art will recognize that similardevices, methods and systems may be applied to bank-based transactionsand merchant based transactions (e.g. for fraud prevention, or as amethod of placing an order and/or making a payment). Further, such asystem may be applicable to many government functions, such as identityverification for the issuing of an identification card, such as adriver's license, social security card, and green card. Moreover, suchdevices, methods, and systems may be used for determining eligibilityfor benefits, such as unemployment benefits and social securitydisability benefits (e.g., determining if an applicant is trulyunemployed or disabled so as to prevent or minimize fraudulent claims).In some embodiments, a data collection system is used to practice theinvention. The data collection system may include an input terminal(e.g., a point of sale device) for receiving user information (e.g.,order information, financial transaction information, name, telephonenumber, home address, ship-to address, etc.). The data collection systemmay further include an imaging device for acquiring an image of a user.The input terminal and the imaging device may transmit information to ahost computer. The host computer may include or be connected to one ormore internal or external databases. The host computer may compare theuser information and/or the image of the user to imaging informationstored in a database to determine, at least in part, whether to approvea transaction. In some embodiments, the input terminal and the imagingdevice are the same. Throughout the application, reference to moneytransfer terminals may instead be considered a reference to inputterminals, a reference to a money transfer system may instead beconsidered a reference to a data collection system, and a reference tosend funds (or language of similar import) may instead be considered areference to purchasing goods or services.

In some money transfer systems, it is desirable to understand theintentions of a user, who may be either a sender or recipient of funds.For example, a person holding a sum of cash may wish to transfer hismoney to a person to buy automatic weapons for a gang. This person, mostlikely, will attempt to conceal his illegal goal. A money transfersystem having the ability to accurately determine a sender's orrecipient's motives, mindset, or intentions may assist in preventingmoney transfers for illegal purposes.

Such a money transfer system may include a network of money transferterminals that can communicate to a host money transfer system. This mayallow a sender to send funds from one money transfer terminal to arecipient at another money transfer terminal. The sender and/oragent/clerk may input transaction information to a money transferterminal. Throughout the application, reference to an agent or clerkalso may include reference to a representative, such as a call centerrepresentative that makes or receives telephone calls for or on behalfof a money transmitter or other company. The information may includepieces of information such as: the sender's name, the sender's address,the sender's phone number, the sender's loyalty number, the sender'saccount number, the amount to be sent, the form the funds will be paidto the money transfer operator in (such as cash, check, credit, ordebit, etc.), the recipient's name, the recipient's address, therecipient's account and/or routing number, the form the funds are to bepaid to the recipient in (such as cash, check, money order, certifiedcheck, direct account deposit, etc.). Further, more information may berequired to be collected by the money transfer operator by law based onthe jurisdiction the money transfer transaction is being sent from orbeing sent to (e.g. identification of the persons involved, the purposeof the transaction, additional documentation, test question, etc.).

Before, after, or concurrently with the sender, agent, clerk and/orrepresentative inputting information to the money transfer terminal, animaging device may collect information from the sender. The imaginginformation may include all or a portion of financial information. Theuser may or may not be aware of this information or image beingcollected. Applicable law may or may not require the user be alerted asto the gathering of such information. The gathering of information withthe imaging device may occur before the sender begins inputtinginformation, while the user is inputting information, after the user hasconcluded inputting information, or any combination thereof.

The imaging device may analyze the information gathered from the userlocally, or it may transfer raw or analyzed data to the money transferterminal. The imaging device may also transfer raw or analyzed data tothe host money transfer system directly or through the money transferterminal. A transfer to the host money transfer system may include boththe financial transaction information the sender has input or providedand the imaging information, or the imaging information and thefinancial transaction information may be transferred separately. In someembodiments, only imaging information is obtained and/or transferred(e.g., when imaging information includes financial transactioninformation).

At the host system, such imaging information may be analyzed by the hostcomputer system, compared to profile information, compared to databaseinformation, and/or analyzed by an expert who has decision makingauthority on whether to allow the transaction or not or requestadditional information or documentation. Based on the imaginginformation and/or the transaction information, the sender may berequired to submit more information, the transaction may be permitted,or the transaction may be blocked outright. To the sender, it may appearthe transaction is proceeding normally even if the transaction has beenblocked, so that the sender is not alerted to the fact that authoritieshave been alerted.

Imaging information may also be gathered when a recipient uses a moneytransfer terminal to receive the funds. The money transfer terminal maybe the same or a different money transfer terminal than the terminalused by the sender. While the transfer may thus far have been approvedthrough the money transfer system or required or permitted to continueby law enforcement authorities, based upon information entered by therecipient, or information gathered by an imaging device from therecipient, the money transfer transaction may be blocked, permitted, ormore information may be required of the recipient.

Information about both the sender and the recipient may be compared toprofiles of possible users and/or to other information maintained in oneor more databases. For example, a profile may exist for a typicalterrorist. The sender and the recipient may also be compared toinformation gathered about the same sender and/or recipient duringprevious transactions and/or registration (e.g., a user may havepreviously registered for loyalty programs, have conducted largeprincipal transfers, registered through a webpage, etc.). The sender andrecipient may also be compared against commercial, law enforcement,public, or other private databases containing information on possibleusers.

FIG. 1 illustrates a simplified block diagram of an example of a moneytransfer terminal 100. The money transfer terminal 100 may be acomputer. The money transfer terminal may be operated by an agent orrepresentative of the money transfer provider or by the sender orrecipient (e.g. a home PC, kiosk, telephone, etc.). In some embodiments,the money transfer terminal includes: a data store 110, a processor 120,a telephone/microphone 130, a printer 140, a speaker 150, a keypad 160,an imaging interface device 170, a display screen 180, a scanner/cardreader 190, and a network interface device 195. The money transferterminal 100 may include a touch screen that functions as the displayscreen 180 and the keypad 160. The keypad 160 may instead be any devicethat accepts user input, such as a trackball, mouse, or joystick. Theimaging interface device 170 may serve to allow the money transferterminal 100 to communicate with the imaging device. Alternatively, animaging device may be directly incorporated into the money transferterminal 100. The speaker 150 may be any audio output device, such asheadphones. The printer 140 may be used to provide the user a receipt,coupon, advertisement, or other information to be taken with her. Thescanner 190 may be used to scan a barcode identifying a user ortransaction, transaction identifier, a discount card, loyalty number,and/or a coupon. The telephone/microphone 130 may be used in conjunctionwith the speaker 150 to interact with the money transfer terminal 100,or a representative of the money transaction. The user and/oragent/clerk may contact, or be contacted by a customer servicerepresentative, or an expert who is evaluating whether to permit a moneytransfer transaction or not.

FIG. 2 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a money transferterminal with an imaging device 200. The money transfer terminal 210 maybe the money transfer terminal 100 of FIG. 1, or may be a differentmoney transfer terminal. The money transfer terminal 210 accepts userinput 230 from user and/or agent/clerk. The user and/or agent/clerk mayinput such information as the sender's name, address, phone number,email address, loyalty number, and/or account number, the recipient'sname, address, phone number, email address, and account number, thedestination state or country, the sender's state or country (or someother expected payout location), the amount to be sent, the form themoney will be paid to the money transfer operator, how soon the senderwants the money to be available to the recipient, and/or the form themoney will be received by the recipient (such as cash, check, moneyorder, directly into an account, etc.). Additional information may berequired by law or internal policy to be gathered from the sender (e.g.,purpose of the transaction, test question/answer, additionaldocumentation) or otherwise provided by sender or required by the moneytransfer provider.

The money transfer terminal 230 may output 240 to the user instructions,feedback, or other information based on the information received fromthe sender. The money transfer terminal 210 may output 250 informationgathered from the sender after the sender has entered all pertinentinformation, during the information gathering process or at some futuretime. This information may be transmitted to a host money transfersystem. The information may be transmitted electronically via a privatenetwork or a public network, such as the internet or the telephonenetwork or a wireless network. This information may also be transmittedvia a person, such as a courier or by voice over the telephone.

An imaging device 220 may be connected to the money transfer terminal.The imaging device may be alerted by the money transfer terminal 210 asto when to gather information from the sender. Alternatively, theimaging device 220 may independently determine when it is appropriate togather information on the sender. The imaging device 220 may also bealerted by a host money transfer system as to when to gather informationon the sender.

The imaging device 220 may gather many different types of informationfrom the sender. For example, the imaging device may be a magneticresonance imaging machine, capable of imaging the sender's brain anddetermining brain activity patterns. Brain activity patterns, which areneurons firing at varying intensities in different regions of the brain,may be used to determine what the sender is thinking about, what hisstate of mind is, and/or what his intention is for conducting the moneytransfer. The imaging device 220 may also be a camera or video camera,capable of detecting a sender's facial expressions. Based upon facialexpressions, tics, or other movements, a determination of the user'smotives and/or state of mind may be determined. The imaging device 220may be used to take a picture or multiple pictures of the sender forcomparison to a database of photographs of known criminals, suspects,terror watch list suspects, money launderers, persons of interest,credit fraud perpetrators or villains. The database may contain the sameor similar information about sender from prior transactions. The imagingdevice 220 may gather a voice sample for voice recognition, conduct aretina scan, a fingerprint scan, etc. Each of these identifiers may becompared to information contained one or more internal or externaldatabases.

In some embodiments, the imaging device 220 may include a functional MRImachine. A functional MRI may require the sender to remain still, or mayallow a sender to maintain a normal amount of movement. The imagingdevice 220 may project a beam of light into the frontal cortex of thesender's brain. The reflected beam of light would then be analyzed toread complex thoughts, such as the sender's motives, state of mind,object of the money transfer, financial transaction information, etc.

An advanced brain scan with imaging device 220, such as with afunctional MRI machine, would allow data entry by the sender to beconducted via the imaging device 220. For example, the sender may beable to input the sender's or recipient's name, sender's or recipient'saddress, sender's or recipient's telephone number, transactioninformation (e.g., amount being sent, receive destination, etc.), orderinformation (e.g., good or service being purchased), financialtransaction information, loyalty account information and/or any otherpiece of required and/or desired information though imaging of thesender's brain.

In some embodiments, the sender may or may not be aware that informationis being captured of him via an imaging device 220. A non-surreptitioussystem may, for example, on the money transfer terminal 210, display analert saying “Additional information about to be collected. Proceed?”The sender may then be given the chance to cancel the transaction andnot have the imaging device 220 image him, or the sender may proceedwith the financial transaction with the accompanying collection ofinformation by the imaging device 220. In some embodiments, a warningmay be displayed on the money transfer terminal 210 and/or on theimaging device 220 that imaging of the sender will occur if a moneytransaction is attempted to be completed. In some embodiments, the moneytransfer terminal 210 may present the sender with a question such as:“Is this money transfer intended for illegal, immoral, harmful orgenerally unscrupulous purposes?” While the question is being answered,before the question is answered, or after the question is answered, theimaging device may capture information to be analyzed whether or not thesender responds yes, no, or unknown.

Analysis of information captured by the imaging device 220 may beanalyzed by the imaging device, it may be analyzed by the money transferterminal 120, and/or it may be transmitted to a host system. The imagingdevice 120 may only selectively transmit information, or it may transmitall of the information it has received or processed to the moneytransfer terminal and/or the host system. In some embodiments, adetermination is made at the imaging device whether the money transfershould be blocked, allowed, or additional information is required ordesirable. In some embodiments, the veracity of information obtainedthrough a terminal may be known based, at least in part, on the userimage and/or imaging information. In other embodiments, a confidencescore is determined to assess the likelihood that the informationobtained through the terminal is true.

In some embodiments, a money transfer terminal communicates with a hostsystem. FIG. 3 shows a simplified block diagram of a money transfersystem including an imaging device 300. The money transfer terminal 310may be the money transfer terminal of FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, or it may be adifferent money transfer terminal. The money transfer terminal 310 ofFIG. 3 receives information from the user 320, and outputs informationto the user 320. The user 320 may be a sender, as previously described,or may be a recipient. The same or different information may be gatheredfor a recipient of funds as for a sender of funds. Information gatheredfrom recipient may include the sender's name, where the money was sentfrom, and/or the expected payout amount.

The money transfer system 300 includes an imaging device. This may bethe imaging device of FIG. 1, or it may be a different imaging device.Imaging device 330 may gather information from the user, such as throughthe methods and embodiments of the imaging device of FIG. 1, and maytransmit such information to the money transfer terminal or the hostsystem 340. In some embodiments, the imaging device 330 is integratedwith the money transfer terminal 310, and is not a separate device orunit. Alternatively, the imaging device 330 may be a separate device orunit.

In FIG. 3, the user 320 interacts with the money transfer terminal 310and with the imaging device 330. The money transfer terminal 310 maysend information entered by the user 320 and/or the agent/clerk andimaging information gathered by the imaging device 330 to a host system340. The host system may be a computer or a network of computers. Thehost system 340 may be centralized or may be distributed over a largearea, and may include storage devices, processors, network interfaces,displays, and databases. The host system 340 may store informationentered by the user 320 and/or agent/clerk. The host system 340 maystore information gathered by the imaging device 330, such as in adatabase. The information gathered by the imaging device 330 and theinformation entered by the user 320 and/or the agent/clerk may be storedin the same or different physical locations. They also may be stored inthe same or different databases. In some embodiments, imaginginformation related to user 320 is deleted after a pre-determined periodof time.

In some embodiments, no agent or representative of the money transfersystem interacts directly with the user 320 or the money transferterminal 310. In some embodiments, the agent may be an entity or aperson employed by the entity, and the entity may or may not be licensedto provide money transfer or banking services. Alternatively, an agent350 may interact with the user 320, the money transfer terminal 310, andthe host system 340, or any combination thereof. For example, if theuser 320 desires to pay or receive cash, the cash may be handed to orreceived from an agent 350 as opposed to being inserted into the moneytransfer terminal 310. The agent may then input to the money transferterminal 310 that a certain amount of cash has been received or paid.Alternatively, the agent 350 or clerk may use a separate money transferterminal, or may interact with the host system 340 to confirm that anamount of cash has been successfully received from or paid to the user320. In some embodiments, the user may pay by credit card, debit card,prepaid card, gift card, money order, stored value card or account, suchas a mobile wallet, or some combination thereof. Similar payment methodsmay be used for a payout to the user. These forms of payment or payoutmay be completed, in whole or in part, through imaging analysis.

In some embodiments, the agent 350 has the ability to provide additionalinformation to supplement information gathered by the imaging device330. Whether or not the user 320 is paying cash by other means or isotherwise required to interact with the agent 350, the agent may be ableto associate information related to her personal observations of theuser 320. For example, if while the user 320 is interacting with themoney transfer terminal 310, the user 320 appears nervous, agitated,scared, wrathful, perspiring more than usual, or provides generalevidence of devious behavior, the agent could input such information tothe same money transfer terminal 310, a different money transferterminal, or by another device which would result in such informationbeing associated with the transaction being entered by the user 320.Such information may be provided before, during, and/or after the user320 has completed the money transfer transaction. When a decision isbeing made as to whether to allow the transaction to proceed, theinformation provided by the agent 350 may be considered.

If after receiving information from the user and/or agent/clerk, eitherfrom the money transfer terminal 310 or the imaging device 330, or both,the user 320 and/or agent/clerk may be prompted to input additionalinformation. For example, if the money transfer transaction is beingmade to an area known to be a hotbed of terrorist activities, such asAfghanistan, more information may be gathered by the imaging device 330and more questions may be provided by the money transfer terminal 310prior to the money transfer being permitted or evaluated. In someembodiments, the user 320 may be required to contact, such as by phoneor in person, a representative of the money transfer company to answerquestions and make assurances as to the legitimate nature of the moneytransfer.

The information received from the user may be analyzed many differentways. FIG. 4 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a money transfersystem with an imaging device 400. In some embodiments, the moneytransfer system with an imaging device 400 includes: a money transferterminal 410, an imaging device 420, a host system 430, a previoustransaction database 440, a decision-maker terminal 450, and a network460. The money transfer terminal 410, imaging device 420, and hostsystem 430 may be the similarly named components of FIGS. 1-3, or theymay be different.

FIG. 4 additionally illustrates a previous transaction database 440.This previous transaction database may be used to at least partiallydetermine whether a money transfer should be permitted, blocked, or havemore information gathered before reaching a decision. The previoustransaction database may contain information regarding previoustransactions conducted by the user 470. The user 470 may be a sender orrecipient or both. While a money transfer transaction by the user 470may not trigger the transaction being blocked for some number of times,it may eventually be blocked. For example, the user 470 may be permittedto send $500 to a recipient in Moscow. However, if the user 470attempted to transmit another $500 to the same recipient, or a differentrecipient in the same region within a predetermined amount of time, thetransaction may be blocked, or more information may be requested fromthe user 470 based upon information stored in the previous transactiondatabase 440. A sender may be blocked from sending any transaction(s),or blocked from sending one or more transactions based on one or morecriteria relating to the transaction or series of transactions (e.g.,sending a number of transactions exceeding a predetermined number and/oramount in a predetermined amount of time, or to a predetermined numberof different recipients). Instead of being completely blocked,transactions may be limited (e.g., send limits imposed, limits oncorridors, etc.). The previous transaction database 440 may also be usedto determine if transactions should be permitted to particularrecipients. Based upon data stored in the previous transaction database440, a recipient may be blocked from receiving transactions, receiving anumber of transactions exceeding a predetermined number in apredetermined amount of time, or from a predetermined number ofdifferent senders. For example, a transaction sending $500 to aparticular recipient may be permitted. However, if ten othertransactions sending money to the same recipient within a week are notedin the previous transaction database 440, future transactions may beblocked or questioned.

FIG. 4 also illustrates a decision-maker terminal 450. In theillustrated embodiment, the decision-maker terminal is connected to thehost system 430. The decision-maker terminal 450 may be used by a expertor designee of the money transfer system operator as to whether aparticular money transfer or group of money transfer should be allowedto proceed. In some embodiments, the decision-maker terminal 450includes an input device, a processor, a computer-readable storagedevice, a network connection, and a display device. The decision-maker,using the decision-maker terminal 450, may be presented an amount ofinformation regarding a pending money transfer. The decision-makerterminal 450 may display information obtained with the imaging device420, and information input by the user 470 and/or agent/clerk to themoney transfer terminal 410. Additionally, the decision-maker terminal450 may receive information noted by an agent during the process of amoney transfer. The decision-maker, alternatively referred to as theexpert, using the decision-maker terminal 450, may have the ability toat least partially determine whether a money transfer transaction shouldbe permitted or blocked. The host system 430 may have the ability tomake an initial determination of whether a money transfer should bepermitted, blocked or requires additional information or documentation.The decision may then be forwarded to the decision-maker terminal 450for review by the expert. In some embodiments, only blocked transactionsare forwarded to the decision-maker terminal 450 for review by theexpert. The expert, using the decision-maker terminal 450, may have theability to override decisions made by the host system 430. In someembodiments, the host system 430 makes a recommendation as to whether toblock the money transfer or not, with the decision-maker terminal 450being used by the expert to make a final determination.

In some embodiments, the expert using the decision-maker terminal 450has the ability to interact directly with user 470 and/or agent/clerk asthe user and/or agent/clerk is interacting with the money transferterminal 410. This may include sending additional questions to answer,calling the user 470 and/or agent/clerk via a telephone, or causing theimaging device 420 to collect more information on the user 470. Theexpert at the decision-maker terminal 450 may also flag the moneytransfer for a later determination of whether to allow or block based oninformation acquired from the recipient of funds. The existence of adecision-maker terminal 450 may be invisible to the user 470. The use ofdecision-maker terminal 450 may be concurrent with the information beingentered by the user 470 and/or agent/clerk and/or may occur prior to therecipient receiving the funds. In some embodiments, the expert using thedecision-maker terminal 450 has the ability to notify law enforcementvia a network 460. In some embodiments, all decisions are made by thehost system 430, with an expert using a decision-maker terminal 450having the ability to override some or all of the decisions made by thehost system.

The network 460 allows the host system 430 to interact with othersystems. For example, the network may be a private network or virtualprivate network run by the money transfer system operator. The networkmay be used for communication between different host systems, ordifferent money transfer terminals. Alternatively, the network 460 maybe a public network, such as the Internet, and may allow the host system430 to communicate with external systems and databases.

Additional databases may also be used to determine whether to permit,deny, or gather more information on a money transfer. FIG. 5 illustratesa simplified block diagram of a money transfer system with imagingcapabilities 500. The embodiment of FIG. 5 includes a money transferterminal 510, an imaging device 520, a decision-maker terminal 530, ahost system 540, and a previous transaction database 570. Thesecomponents may be the same as the similarly identified components ofprevious figures, or may represent other components.

Illustrated in FIG. 5 is a second money transfer terminal 550. Thismoney transfer terminal may function identically to the other moneytransfer terminal 510. A user 597 may conduct a money transfer withmoney transfer terminal 510 either directly or through an agent/clerk,with another user 595, receiving the funds at the second money transferterminal 550 either directly or through a agent/clerk. Imaginginformation may be gathered on the user 595 via a second imaging device560. The imaging device 560 may or may not gather imaging information onuser 595 based on information provided by user 597 to money transferterminal 510, or information gathered by imaging device 520.

The embodiment of FIG. 5 further includes an external database 580. Thisexternal database may be maintained by a party separate from the moneytransfer system operator. For example, the external database 580 may bemanaged by a law enforcement agency. This database may containinformation about suspected or known money launderers, criminals,terrorists, or other persons of interest. If a transaction is conductedby a person in this database, the transaction may be blocked orauthorities may be alerted. In addition to containing information onparticular persons, the external database 580 may contain profileinformation. For example, if the imaging device 520 or 560 receivesinformation fitting a particular profile, such as a person exhibiting aparticular list of characteristics, the money transfer may be blocked ordelayed. Profile information may be maintained in one or more internalor external databases.

In some embodiments, a profile database 585 may be used to compare thesender or recipient to profiles of potential illegal users. For example,characteristics, including imaging data, may be compiled from one ormore sources to create a profile of a potential terrorist. Thesecharacteristics may be compiled from real suspects, transactions and/ormay be the result of research. A user exhibiting these characteristicsmay be blocked or questioned regarding the money transfer transaction.

The embodiment of FIG. 5 also includes a commercial database 590. Acommercial database 590 may be maintained by a company, such as a creditagency, or data mining agency. Information in the commercial database590 may be maintained and updated by the money transfer system operator,or by some other entity. The commercial database may be stored at thehost system 540, or may be external to the host system 540, butaccessible by the host system 540.

Decisions as to whether to permit, block, and/or obtain additionalinformation about a money transfer and/or user may be dependent on morethan one single factor. For example, while information collected fromthe imaging device 520 or 560 signals a possible illegal transfer,information in the databases 570, 580, and/or 590 may prove otherwise.In some embodiments, a specific weight may be assigned to eachinformation source, for example, information from the previoustransaction database 570 may receive 20% of the decision making weight,with imaging information from the imaging device receiving 50% weight,and the remainder divided between the external database 580 and thecommercial database 590. In some embodiments, no definite weight may beassigned to each source of information, with the decision left up to anexpert using the decision-maker terminal 530.

The systems and devices of FIGS. 1-5 may be used to execute a method ofusing an imaging analysis to determine whether to permit, block, orobtain additional information about a money transfer and/or user. FIG. 6illustrates an exemplary embodiment of a method for determining whetherto permit a sender to complete a money transfer 600. As those with skillin the art will understand, many of the stages described herein may berearranged into a different order without impacting the purpose of themethod. First, transaction information is received 610. This may includeinformation about the sender, the recipient, the financial transaction,and both the sender's and receiver's motives and/or intentions.

Based upon information received from the sender, a determination 615 maybe made at the imaging device, the money transfer terminal, and/or thehost system whether imaging of the sender and/or recipient is necessaryor desired. In some embodiments, if the transaction appears highlyinnocuous, such as a one-time transfer of $100 to a family member, thesender may not be imaged at all. Conversely, if the sender conducts alarge number of transactions involving thousands of dollars, it may berequired for the sender to be imaged. Imaging may be required by law orinternal policy. Imaging may or may not required the prior consent ofthe user. Next, the sender is imaged 620. The imaging of the sender 620may include taking one image, or multiple images. The image may be aphotograph or video, or may be subcutaneous. The step of imaging thesender 620 may or may not include asking the sender if he or she agreesto be imaged. If he or she does not agree, the money transfer may becancelled or delayed.

Next, the image data may be transferred 625 to either the host system orthe money transfer terminal. Similarly, the transaction data may betransferred 630 to the host system or to another money transferterminal. The image data and the transaction data may be transferredtogether or separately to the host system.

Based upon the image data and/or the transaction data a determination onwhether to allow, deny, or request more information 635 is made. Thisdecision may be made at the host system, the money transfer terminal, adecision-maker terminal, and/or an imaging device. This determination635 may be preliminary. For example, the determination may be made totemporarily allow the transaction, but re-evaluate the transaction aftercomparisons are made in databases, or the recipient is imaged andinvestigated. In some embodiments, the preliminary determination may bea final decision. For example, if the imaging information reveals a highprobability of illegality of the transaction, the transaction may beblocked outright, with the authorities alerted. In some embodiments, adecision to block or re-evaluate the transaction at a later time maylead to the sender being contacted 637 for more information regardingthe transaction, her motives, her background, her citizenship, or anyother information relevant to the transaction.

Following the preliminary determination 635, databases, such as thecommercial databases, external databases, and/or previous transactiondatabases, may be analyzed 640. In some embodiments, the databases mayonly be analyzed if certain information is present in the imaging datacollected or the transaction data collected. Alternatively, the databaseinformation may be analyzed before imaging to determine whether thesender should be imaged.

Next, all or part of the analyzed data may be sent to a decision-makerterminal 645 for an expert to review. The expert may decide outrightthat the transaction should be blocked, he may flag for further review,or he may permit the transaction to proceed. The expert's decision isinput 650 to the decision-maker terminal. Alternatively, he may only beallowed to give an opinion, with the host system or a money transferterminal making the final determination.

Following the decision by the expert, another determination may be made.At this point a determination may be made to block or allow thetransaction 655 or obtain additional information and/or documentation.Again, the determination may be contingent on information received lateron from the recipient of the funds. In some embodiments, thedetermination has been made to allow the transaction no matter theresults of the imaging of the recipient. A determination may also bemade at this time not to image the recipient at all. The methodcontinues as depicted in FIG. 7 with the recipient receiving the fundsintended for him.

FIG. 7 illustrates a simplified block diagram of a method for issuingfunds sent by a sender to a recipient 700. The method may be regarded asa continuation of the sending process illustrated in FIG. 6, or as aseparate process or method. First, transaction information is receivedfrom the recipient 710 and/or agent/clerk at a money transfer terminal.The transaction information may be in the form of a barcode to scan, atransaction number, the recipient's name address, and/or phone number,the sender's name, address, or phone number, the anticipated payoutamount, or any information capable of identifying the sender, recipient,or transaction.

Based upon this information, or information previously received oranalyzed regarding the sender, a determination as to whether to imagethe recipient 715 is made. In some embodiments, the recipient may alwaysor never be imaged.

If the recipient is to be imaged, one or multiple images of therecipient are taken 720. Following the collection of the image orimages, image data is transmitted 725 to the money transfer terminaland/or the host system. Transaction data entered by or relating to therecipient may also be transmitted 730 to the host system, at the sametime, before, or after the image data is transmitted.

At this point a determination may be made as to whether to allow, block,or gather more information on a transaction 735 and/or user. Thisdetermination may be final, or may be a preliminary determination.Depending on the information received from the recipient, the recipientmay be contacted for more information 737. For example, an expert maycall the recipient and/or sender and ask him further questions.

Before funds are released to the recipient or the transaction is denied,databases may be analyzed for data on the recipient 740. If therecipient was previously identified by the sender in a method similar tothat of FIG. 6, a search of the databases for the recipient may alreadyhave been conducted. Information may then be sent to a decision-makerterminal 745 to receive input from an expert 750. This may result in atransaction that has previously been evaluated by an expert, beingreevaluated by the same or a different expert. In some embodiments, theexpert at this stage has a greater amount of information presented tohim because the recipient has also entered or provided information andpossibly been imaged.

Prior to dispensing the funds to the recipient, a final determination ofwhether to allow or block the transaction or obtain additionalinformation and/or documentation may be made 755. In some embodiments,the transaction may be allowed, but information about the transaction isforwarded to a government agency. In some embodiments, a transaction ismaintained in a pending state until a further investigation of theparties involved may be conducted.

Merely by way of example, the host systems may be one or more servers.These servers may be a web server, which can be used, merely by way ofexample, to process requests from the imaging devices and/or moneytransfer terminals. The web server can also run a variety of serverapplications, including HTTP servers, FTP servers, CGI servers, databaseservers, Java™ servers, and the like. In some embodiments of theinvention, the web server may be configured to serve web pages that canbe operated within a web browser on the money transfer terminal or theimaging device to perform methods of the invention.

Merely by way of example, the server(s) can be one or more generalpurpose computers capable of executing programs or scripts in responseto the money transfer terminals and/or imaging devices and/or otherservers, including without limitation web applications (which might, insome cases, be configured to perform methods of the invention). Merelyby way of example, a web application can be implemented as one or morescripts or programs written in any suitable programming language, suchas Java™, C, C# or C++, and/or any scripting language, such as Perl,Python, or TCL, as well as combinations of any programming/scriptinglanguages. The application server(s) can also include database servers,including without limitation those commercially available from Oracle™,Microsoft™, Sybase™, IBM™ and the like, which can process requests fromclients (including, depending on the configuration, database clients,API clients, web browsers, etc.) running on the money transferterminals, imaging devices and/or another server. In some embodiments,an application server can create web pages dynamically for displayingthe information in accordance with embodiments of the invention. Dataprovided by an application server may be formatted as web pages(comprising HTML, Javascript, etc., for example) and/or may be forwardedto the money transfer terminals and/or imaging devices via a web server(as described above, for example). Similarly, a web server might receiveweb page requests and/or input data from the money transfer terminalsand/or imaging devices and/or forward the web page requests and/or inputdata to an application server. In some cases, a web server may beintegrated with an application server.

In accordance with further embodiments, one or more servers can functionas a file server and/or can include one or more of the files (e.g.,application code, data files, etc.) necessary to implement methods ofthe invention incorporated by an application running on a money transferterminals and/or imaging devices and/or another server. Alternatively,as those skilled in the art will appreciate, a file server can includeall necessary files, allowing such an application to be invoked remotelyby a another computer and/or server. It should be noted that thefunctions described with respect to various servers herein (e.g.,application server, database server, web server, file server, etc.) canbe performed by a single server and/or a plurality of specializedservers, depending on implementation-specific needs and parameters.

It should be noted that the methods, systems, and devices discussedabove are intended merely to be examples. It must be stressed thatvarious embodiments may omit, substitute, or add various procedures orcomponents as appropriate. For instance, it should be appreciated that,in alternative embodiments, the methods may be performed in an orderdifferent from that described, and that various steps may be added,omitted, or combined. Also, features described with respect to certainembodiments may be combined in various other embodiments. Differentaspects and elements of the embodiments may be combined in a similarmanner. Also, it should be emphasized that technology evolves and, thus,many of the elements are examples and should not be interpreted to limitthe scope of the invention.

While the specification has focused on money transfers, such systems andmethods may be applied to a wide variety of financial transactions if animaging device is available, such as ATM transactions, bank withdrawalsand deposits, financial transactions on the internet Instead of a moneytransfer terminal, a computer with a webcam, a mobile video device, acellular phone with a built-in camera, or any similar suitable devicemay be used.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by oneof ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practicedwithout these specific details. For example, well-known circuits,processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shownwithout unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the embodiments.Further, the application refers to certain persons alternatively as “he”or “she.” This does not serve as a limitation on the gender of theidentified party.

Also, it is noted that the embodiments may be described as a processwhich is depicted as a flow diagram or block diagram. Although each maydescribe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operationscan be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order ofthe operations may be rearranged. A process may have additional stepsnot included in the figure.

Having described several embodiments, it will be recognized by those ofskill in the art that various modifications, alternative constructions,and equivalents may be used without departing from the spirit of theinvention. For example, the above elements may merely be a component ofa larger system, wherein other rules may take precedence over orotherwise modify the application of the invention. Also, a number ofsteps may be undertaken before, during, or after the above elements areconsidered. Accordingly, the above description should not be taken aslimiting the scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of processing a money transfercomprising: providing a money transfer system comprising a moneytransfer terminal, an imaging device, a host computer system, and adecision maker terminal; receiving, at the money transfer terminal,financial transaction information from a user relating to a moneytransfer requested by the user; acquiring, with the imaging device, amagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) image of the user; receiving, at themoney transfer terminal from the imaging device, the MRI image;presenting, with the money transfer terminal, a question to the userregarding the money transfer; receiving, at the money transfer terminalfrom the imaging device, a first additional MRI image of the user priorto presentation of the question, a second additional MRI image of theuser during presentation of the question, and a third additional MRIimage of the user after presentation of the question; transmitting, fromthe money transfer terminal to the host computer system, the financialtransaction information and the MRI image; transmitting, from the moneytransfer terminal to the host computer system, the first additional MRIimage, the second additional MRI image, and the third additional MRIimage; retrieving, by the host computer system, MRI imaging informationassociated with a previous financial transaction by the user;transmitting, from the host computer system to the decision-makerterminal, the financial transaction information, the MRI image, and theMRI imaging information associated with the previous financialtransaction; transmitting, from the host computer system to thedecision-maker terminal, the first additional MRI image, the secondadditional MRI image, and the third additional MRI image; evaluating,with the decision-maker terminal, the financial transaction information;comparing, with the decision-maker terminal, the MRI image with the MRIimaging information associated with the previous financial transaction;determining, with the decision-maker terminal, based at least in part onthe evaluation of the financial transaction information and thecomparison of the MRI image with the MRI imaging information associatedwith the previous financial transaction, whether to approve the moneytransfer, wherein determining, with the decision-maker terminal, whetherto approve the money transfer is further based at least in part on acomparison between at least two of the first additional MRI image, thesecond additional MRI image, or the third additional MRI image;transmitting, from the decision-maker terminal to the host computersystem, an indication of whether the money transfer is approved; andtransmitting, from the host computer system to the money transferterminal, the indication of whether the money transfer is approved. 2.The method for processing a money transfer of claim 1 furthercomprising: receiving, at a second money transfer terminal, a requestfrom a recipient to disburse funds associated with the money transfer;acquiring, from a second imaging device, an MRI image of the recipient;receiving, at the second money transfer terminal from the second imagingdevice, the MRI image of the recipient; transmitting, from the secondmoney transfer terminal to the host computer system, the request and theMRI image of the recipient; retrieving, by the host computer system, MRIimaging information associated with a previous financial transaction bythe recipient; transmitting, from the host computer system to thedecision-maker terminal, the request, the MRI image of the recipient,and the MRI imaging information associated with the previous financialtransaction by the recipient; evaluating, with the decision-makerterminal, the request; determining, with the decision-maker terminal,based at least in part on the evaluation of the request and thecomparison of the MRI image of the recipient with the MRI imaginginformation associated with the previous financial transaction by therecipient, whether to approve the request; transmitting, from thedecision-maker terminal to the host computer system, an indication ofwhether the request is approved; and transmitting, from the hostcomputer system to the money transfer terminal, the indication ofwhether the request is approved.
 3. The method for processing a moneytransfer of claim 1 further comprising: receiving, at the decision-makerterminal, a decision by an expert of whether the user has an illegalpurpose for the money transfer, wherein the decision is based upon apresentation of the MRI image to the expert; and wherein determining,with the decision-maker terminal, whether to approve the money transferis further based at least in part on the decision by the expert ofwhether the user has an illegal purpose for the money transfer.
 4. Amethod of processing a money transfer comprising: providing a moneytransfer system comprising a money transfer terminal, an imaging device,a host computer system, and a decision maker terminal; receiving, at themoney transfer terminal, financial transaction information from a userrelating to a money transfer requested by the user; determining, withthe money transfer terminal, based at least in part on the financialtransaction information received from the user, that the money transferrequested by the user requires MRI imaging of the user to approve thetransaction; acquiring, with the imaging device, a magnetic resonanceimaging (MRI) image of the user; receiving, at the money transferterminal from the imaging device, the MRI image; transmitting, from themoney transfer terminal to the host computer system, the financialtransaction information and the MRI image; retrieving, by the hostcomputer system, MRI imaging information associated with a previousfinancial transaction by the user; transmitting, from the host computersystem to the decision-maker terminal, the financial transactioninformation, the MRI image, and the MRI imaging information associatedwith the previous financial transaction; evaluating, with thedecision-maker terminal, the financial transaction information;comparing, with the decision-maker terminal, the MRI image with the MRIimaging information associated with the previous financial transaction;determining, with the decision-maker terminal, based at least in part onthe evaluation of the financial transaction information and thecomparison of the MRI image with the MRI imaging information associatedwith the previous financial transaction, whether to approve the moneytransfer; transmitting, from the decision-maker terminal to the hostcomputer system, an indication of whether the money transfer isapproved; and transmitting, from the host computer system to the moneytransfer terminal, the indication of whether the money transfer isapproved.